Includes bibliographical references (p. 261-271) and index.
Contents
Secrets of the Cave of Letters -- The origins of a cave -- Bar Kokhba: the second coming of the Messiah? -- The minimalists and the maximalists of archaeology and the Bar Kokhba Rebellion -- Return to the caves: from Bethsaida to the Dead Sea -- The Copper Scroll and the Dead Sea caves -- "The Cave of the Column" and the Cave of the Letters -- X marks the spot: the rest of the story -- A tale of two caves: Babatha and her-story -- Future secrets of Dead Sea caves research.
Summary
One of the most spectacular archaeological discoveries In Israel took place in 1960 when the legendary Yigael Yadin excavated a cave in the Dead Sea area subsequently called the "Cave of Letters." The cave contained the largest cache of ancient personal correspondence and documents ever uncovered in Israel.
